[Suicide Junkie]

I don't have exact statistics available, but when you compare a small number of large-hitpoint components and a large number of small-hitpoint components, with the same total hitpoints, the larger-hitpoint components get hit more often than randomly by component, and even more often than the 50% by hitpoints.

The example I used for testing was the B5 light, medium and heavy "Inert Armor".
I don't recall exactly what they were, but take it as:
10 hp/1 kt for light armor
50 hp/10 kt for heavy armor

I designed identical ships, except for armor...
6 guns, and 6 engines from standard SE4, minimum requirements for equipment.
The light armor ship ended up with 6K hitpoints, while the Heavy armor ship ended up with 4K hitpoints.

Guess who wins? 60-70% of the time, it was the heavy armor ship. Even though it had fewer armor components and only 2/3rds the number of hitpoints, it usually won the battles.

Tactical combat, and watching each hit showed that the heavy ship would win because its heavier armor got hit more often, and less damage leaked through to destroy weapons.
The light armored ship would lose firepower, and become unable to fight back.

On the occasions of the light armor ship winning, the heavy ship would suffer bad luck on its own shots; failing to damage enough weapons on the light ship. Trading blow for blow, the 4k heavy armor hitpoints simply ran out first.